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(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

H. V. SMITH.

STEAM WHISTLE.

No. 405,330. Patented June 18; 1889. p

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STEAM WHISTLE.

No. 405,330. Patented June 18 1889.

sses UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY V. SMITH, OF BIRMINGHAM, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS,

OF ONE-HALF TO EDVARD G. BURNHAM, OF BRIDGEPORT, CON- NECTICUT.

STEAM-WHISTLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 405,330, dated J 1111018, 1889.

Application filed September 14, 1888.

T0 at whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HENRY V. SMITH, a citizen of the United States,residing at Birmingham, in the county of New Haven and State ofConnecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inSteam-lrVhistle-s; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame,

My invention relates to certain new and useful improvements insteam-whistles, and has for its object to provide a device ofthisdescription which shall be simple in construction and exceedinglyeconomical in the use of steam, and whereby very pleasing and harmonioussound-effects can be produced; and with these ends in view my inventionconsists in certain details of construction and combination of elements,such as will be hereinafter. fully set forth, and then recited in theclaims.

In order that such as are skilled in the art to which my inventionappertains may fully understand my improved whistle and how to make anduse the same, I will now describe it in detail, reference being had tothe accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification, andin which- Figure 1 is an elevation of the complete whistle; Fig. 2, acentral vertical section through the valve, steam-chamber, and exits;Fig. 3, a detail plan view of the top of the valve-castin g in which theexits for the steam are drilled; and Fig. 4 a transverse section throughthe whistle-tubes and stem, taken at line X X of Fig. 1.

Like reference-numbers denote the same parts in all the figures of thedrawings.

1 is the valve-casting, in which is arranged any su1table valve 2,adapted to be controlled by lever 3.

Serial No. 285,401. 'No model.)

at an angle of some forty-five degrees, for the purpose presentlyexplained.

7 is a stem,whose lower threaded extremity 8 is secured in the centralthreaded opening in the top of the valve-casting, as seen at Fig. 2.

9 is an outwardly-extended flange upon the central stem,which,when thelatter is screwed down into position, is, as to its face, substantiallyparallel with the surface 6 of the casting. The space between these twoopposed surfaces forms an annular steamway, whose plane is outward atabout an angle of fortyfive degrees, as indicated by the dotted lines ain Figs. 1 and 2.

The upper end of the stem 7 is threaded, as seen at 10. 11 are thewhistle-tubes, which, in any convenient number-say three, four, five, orsixare firmly secured together by brackets 12 13, the lower of which isplain and adapted to fit snugly on the stem,and the upper of which isthreaded and adapted to engage the threads at the upper portion of thestem. By this means the whistles may be readily raised and lowered uponthe stem so as to bring their open ends into any desired positionrelative to the outwardly-projected steam-jet. A check-nut lat isthreaded upon the upper end of the stem, and, by engagement with the topsurface of the upper bracket, secures the whistle in any desiredposition of vertical adjustment.

In this my invention the steam is projected outward across the mouths ofthe tubes, as indicated by the dotted lines a, so that the sound isproduced by the swift passage of the jet across the extremity of thetube. I find that by using the steam in this manner a greater volume ofsound is produced with less expenditure of steam than by the old method,since theresonant area of the several tubes is greater than that of anysingle tube which could be blown by the same jet; and, furthermore, thatI can, if desired, by variations in the length of the tubes, produce acombination of different notes to form a chime.

I am awarethat a chime-whistle formed by subdivisions in asingleresonant bell has been produced, and I do not wish to beunderstood as laying claim to such construction, the gist of myinvention lying in the operation of a plurality of resonant tubes by asingle jet of steam, which is projected across their open ends, asdistinguished from its projection into said tubes.

I am further aware that a single bell having a steam-jet located beneaththe mouth thereof and axial therewith is shown in the patent to oneReippel, No. 166,479 but this differs from my device in this, that onlyone tube or bell can be actuated by the jet,while in my whistle aplurality of tubes may be used and the steam pass outward across themouth of each of the tubes, thereby producing increased tone with aneconomical expenditure of steam.

I claim 1. The combination, with the group of resonant tubes, of thecentrally-placed stem about which said tubes are grouped and whereonthey are supported, a steamway axial with the stem and eccentric towardeach and every one of the said tubes, and a valve whereby the saidsteamway is controlled, substantially as set forth.

2. In a steam-whistle, the combination, with the central supporting-stemand the steamway concentric with and having its line of throw outwardlyfrom said stem, of the group of resonant tubes, the brackets in whichsaid tubes are supported and whereby they are secured to said stem andare adjustable vertically relative thereto, and the Valve 1' or conandthe check-nut threaded upon the top of the stem and abutting against theupper bracket, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination, with the stem threaded at its upper extremity, ofthe steamway at the bottom end of the stem, the plurality of resonanttubes, and the two brackets wherein they are supported, the lowerbracket being plain and the upper bracket threaded for engagem ent withthe stem, whereby the Whistle-tubes may be adjusted, as desired,relative to the stem and held in their adjusted position, substantiallyas set forth.

I11 testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.I

HENRY V. SMITH.

\Vitn esses:

S. II. HUBBARD, \VM. J. TANNER.

